WHERE: Los Angeles (DTLA) / What happened to NoHo??

THE MENU: (2/20 - 2/24)

HOW+WHY: Our Story / LQ@SK

LQ @ SK / PARKING / CATERING / ARCHIVES

Contact us (anytime!): info@starrykitchen.com

UPDATE: If you can or want to use the metro, we’re only like a 8-10 min walk from Pershing Square Station on the Red Line.  Here’s a link for a map and walking directions if you want to do that: http://bit.ly/8uGkBF

Hey guys,

WOW there’s a lot going on this weekend, so I’ll try to keep this simple and relatively short:

Saturday, 11/21 (in Downtown LA) test-run details here —> http://bit.ly/aQiNL

REMINDER: it’s CRUCIAL that if you park in the area you pay attention to the parking instructions for our garage (which should be the cheapest and most convenient option)

Don’t forget that this is our 1ST time here… so if we mess up a little here, a little there, and maybe some more here, there and everywhere… purdy please don’t be so hard on us… we just wanna learn! ^^

Just in case you forward this to your friend, here’s the quick CONCEPT:

We make 1 meat & 1 veggie dish, choose your protein, choose how you want it (taco, burrito or Vietnamese banh mi sandwich), we serve it w/ our side and that’s it.  No more, no less, no debate, and no discussion (hey, we only made 1 meat & veggie, so that’s all we gots!)

• Meat: a new VN LEMONGRASS CHICKEN (it’s supa-dupa yummy too.. it’s da new hotness… really it is!!!)
• Veggie: 5-SPICE POPCORN TOFU (cruchy, compact… all the things you don’t expect w/ tofu.  Oh yeah, and it has some flava too)
• Side: JAPANESE GARLIC NOODLES (delciousness for all, which is never a bad thing right?)

Whew, done with the Saturday info, and we’ll keep this train-a-goin’ (choo choo)… and yes, I do feel the need to insert text sound effects whenever possible (SNAP).  It makes posts more RICH, engaging and SASSY (that’s what the internetS tells me though… to stay SASSY… oh I heart you internetS)

SUNDAY, 11/22 (in NoHo):

• Meat: CHINESE HAMBURGER meat served w/ our spicy sriracha mayo sauce (trust that this is hearty, delicious… and did I mention hearty?)
• Veggie: HONEY PANKO CRUSTED CRISPY TOFU BALLS (aka “Carnivorous Game Changer #2”)
• Side: possibly PINEAPPLE FRIED RICE (we’ll let you know what the final decision is)

Alrighty, that was simple and only a sprinkle of my dumb and cheese-riffic commentary, right? ^_^  Hope to see you downtown tomorrow and/or NoHo on Sunday… that way you can get more of my dumb and cheese-riffic commentary in person. ;)

Oh yeah, come for the food too.  It’s not dumb, cheese-rrific, and won’t debate with you about anything at all (well it might about which one was better THREE’S COMPANY or THE ROPERS… hey, it’s a pop-culture infused food so we can’t help it… and the obvious answer is Three’s Company ^_^)  It’s so yummy and a perfect compliment to your day, life and soul… okay, maybe not your soul, but that sounds appealing, right??? :p

See you this weekend,
Team SK

Happy Sunday everyone,

WOW, we’ve come along way in about 7 months!  For those that lurk on the mailing list and just look at all the pictures and haven’t stopped by in a while (or those I have voluntarily added, feel free to ask me to take you off ^_^), there has been a TREMENDOUS wave of AWESOME newcomers mainly from our favorite friend, YELP! Thanks to you guys for supporting our “underground covert culinary…kitchen” which now has NINETEEN 5-star reviews.  HOLY CRAP! ^_^

Also, if you guys didn’t know, TODAY (11/15) is our ONE YEAR WEDDING ANNIVERSARY.  It’s not a gimmick, it’s not a joke, and is this real???  Either way, just thought we’d let you know.  Here’s a cheesy wedding photo from US above.  And of course, the only thing we ask is that you stop by and enjoy our food. ^_^

THE DISHES

NOW onto the food.  This time we’ll start FIRST w/ the KOSHER/VEGGIE dish.  I’ve told MANY of you guys about this and the miracles of Young Green Jackfruit, but if you haven’t heard it here’s what I always say,

“it’s not like it’s yellow exotic counterpart because it has NO flavor.  So in order to cook it, you HAVE to braise it and infuse the flavor into it.  But something miraculous happens when you do this: it takes the texture of pulled pork.  And many of my vegetarian friends get mad at me when they first try this because they think it’s pork!”

With that said, the veggie is VN BRAISED COCONUT JACKFRUIT. Be warned that THIS is SUPER limited if you want to try it.  And because I’ve been pretty bad (sorry guys!) at holding stuff in limited quantity back successfully THIS is going to be first come, first served.  For those that are curious, you can always do the half/half order on the taco. ;)

And like the subject says, the MEAT is one of our “signature” dishes: VN BRAISED COCONUT PORK (aka THIT KHO) served w/ sliced hardboiled eggs boiled in the coconut stew.  Is this good?  You bet your bottom dollar it is sucka!  It’s this blogger/eater’s favorite dish of the 15 dishes we’ve served thus far.  You may not agree, but we thinks you may like it regardless.

Lastly, the SIDE.  Well, as of this email the KITCHEN NINJA doesn’t know exactly what it will be… but she does know it will be a form of fried rice.  If you’re like me, we’ll just trust her to make something amazing and try it once it’s served. :)

11/21 Saturday Service Downtown

Okay, this post’s getting long, so if you want more details go HERE for more info: http://bit.ly/aQiNL

Or just email me, call me, Facebook wall post us, PM me, tweet me OR just show up to service and ask us about it.  If you can come, PLEASE come. :)
Thanks everyone, and we’ll see ya from 12-3p.

Xoxo,

TEAM SK

“DAAAAANG!”

That’s all I gotta say about yesterday’s service.  Well that and “HOLY MOLY!”

It was the absolute BUSIEST food service we’ve had since the inception of our… and I’ll use it again… “covert culinary operation!”

Btw, I just wanted to take a moment to apologize if the food was coming out a little bit slowly and how we ran out.  WOW, we just didn’t anticipate it.  We even made MORE than usual to try to anticipate it, but you guys still surprised us.  Goes to show you, don’t underestimate the power of the internet… that and great tastebuds wanting more (if we don’t say so ourselves ^_^).

Above are some pics from last night’s service.  Check ‘em out on our Facebook Fan Page, and check out more including our fun R&D pics (Research & Development for the non-geeks out there) too.  I talked to some of you last night about our idea, but wait and see kiddies.  We’re going to actually offer opportunities to a select few of you to try some of these elusive dishes “R&D” dishes… FINALLY!  I think we’re going to start in December.  Keep on the look out.

Alrighty, I’m typing this up at 3.30a and I’m tired.  I’ll leave you with this…

SUNDAY SERVICE: I would say this is one of our signature dishes, VN BRAISED COCONUT PORK (aka “thit kho”) served with sliced hard boiled eggs BOILED in the coconut stew (and it’s GOOD!)

We got lots more to tell ya… but I’ve gots little more energy left before i pass out and drool on my keyboard (from looking at all the food pics that are making me oh so hungry…. WHY didn’t I keep a stash of food from service??? ^_^)

Nite nite (or good morning I guess ^_^)

TEAM SK

HAPPY HALLOWEEN,

While everyone is gallivanting around in their cute little costumes and consuming liquid libations (of the alcoholic sort I hope), we’re CRACKIN’ away at a whole new set of items for ya tomorrow when you wake up with a hangover (it’s because we love you oh so dearly ^_^).

The subject and pictures probably speak for themselves, but if you want a little bit more description of the deliciousness that we’re going to introduce Sunday (12-3p) here ya go:

Ohhhhhhhhh… what can I say to articulate the flavor in every cute lil’ morsel of tender and succulent VN BRAISED STAR ANISE PORK that can convey what it is and why you should come get it…  WELL, if you’ve had the VN braised coconut pork (and after reading up SOME call it VN braised pork in caramel for those that are PICKY), it’s kinda like that… except w/ some stronger flavors (star anise) for an explosion (ka BOOM) of flavor, texture (ooo so tender!) and Vietnam all rolled up in one little bite sized package! (okay, maybe not Vietnam, but you get it… I hope)

And what can I say about the CRISPY TOFU BALLS… who woulda known crispy fried tofu could taste so good! They’re encrusted in honey panko, lightly filled w/ green onions and corn, and will be served w/ our tangy mustard mayo sauce for an oooooh so delicious delight for your tastebuds (bring a date, you could get lucky too ^_^).  If you don’t like tofu, WHO CARES… ‘cause this sh-t’s good!

Oh yeah, we also have a new side we’re introducing too: PINEAPPLE FRIED RICE: So tomorrow should be a smörgåsbord of flavor, fun and…. did I mention FLAVOR!

Hope to see you guys out, and as always… quantity… is… LIMITED!

Toodles,

TEAM SK

Hey chockos,

Here’s what we got for your Sunday FOOD service (not to be mixed up with any religious affiliation… even though some of you come religiously ^_^) tomorrow from 12-3p:

Meat: KALBI CHIM (braised Korean short-ribs) and in the burrito you’ll get KIMCHI FRIED RICE inside w/ the KALBI CHIM instead of just plain ol’ (and yet tasty) sushi rice

Veggie-licious entree: stir-fried and a delish-ified (yeah, you could get a huge score if you used that word in a game of Scrabble) KIMCHI + KING OYSTER MUSHROOMS

All dishes served w/ a side of LOVE… and JAP CHAE (Korean glass noodles)

Don’t forget that we’ve upped the ante on the banh mi/sandwiches w/ the homemade sweetly creamy french-like mayo (and let me tell you NOW it makes a HUGE difference… every bite was like heaven: so light and fluffy (ummmm YEAH, don’t forget we like to eat our own food too).

If you’re going to come, but don’t know when… you can always call or email your order ahead of time and we’ll hold it for ya.

Xoxo

Team SK

UPDATE: I just forgot I DID have pics of how I proposed to my wife.  Here’s one for ya.  Looks cheesy, but that’s how it worked (with the home cardboard signs and all ^_^):

Now, I DIDN’T propose to the KITCHEN NINJA this way (i.e. the ring on the sushi), BUT as I mentioned before TODAY is actually our 1 Year Anniversary.  And what better way to spend it than with… YOU!  And that might sound sarcastic, but it isn’t (even though most of the time I am being VERY sarcastic). So:

Will you join us for our 1 Year Wedding Anniversary food service? ^_^

TEAM SK

objectivetastebud:

jiiivejuice:

bathroomwindow:

if  my husband proposed to me this way

i would give him sex 6 times an hour no questions

i second this!

So let’s jump into the time machine and look back at… ummm… Wednesday.  Remember that fateful day? No?  Well we did (and here’s a LINK for ya just in case - http://bit.ly/1826JA).  FOREVER (until the next biggest day) 11/11/09 will be remember as the most HECTIC day of food service in the short 7-month history that is… STARRY KITCHEN

The reason why we bring it up is because of the dish, what we called VN BAKED GROUND GARLIC PORK otherwise known as NEM NUONG in the Vietnamese circles of yesteryear… and maybe present day too, but that doesn’t matter.

WELL, that was really long winded BUT I mention all of this because we are an OFFICIAL (how official can one be serving food outta the back of your apartment???) SPONSOR of our friends at the theater ensemble group-tacular, LODESTONE, and their last and final show opening of GRACE KIM & THE SPIDERS FROM MARS!  This marks an INCREDIBLE ending after 10 years as a predominantly Asian-American theater group in LA.

WHY should you care?  Well, if you want to see some good theater and laugh (because it’s a comedy not at them foo’s), this show goes on for the next month.  UNFORTUNATELY, tomorrow night’s opening is sold out.  But if you are one of the fortunate entities to have a ticket, you get to enjoy some of our food… for free (but isn’t $5 ALMOST like it’s free, right???).  And that INCLUDES traditional Vietnamese Springrolls with…. (tongue/drum rolll please)… NEM NUONG!  And that is what the hoopla is ALL about.

For more information about the show, check out THIS link: http://bit.ly/2ur575

Hope to see you at the theater,

TEAM SK

PS - And if we don’t see you at the theater… hope to see you this Sunday (12-3p) for our signature VN BRAISED COCONUT PORK (aka THIT KHO)… oh man, oh man I cannot WAIT!  This dish is actually this blogger’s (am I officially a blogger now???) FAVORITE of our 15 meat dishes (that I’ll compile into one post ONE day)

WOW,

This is either a really LATE post, or REALLY early! ^_^

So, it’s technically Sunday, so we tell you what we’re trying.

Meat: SOY-GINGER BRAISED GARLIC CHICKEN

Veggie: SESAME CRUSTED TOFU

Side: GARLIC SUN-DRIED TOMATO MACARONI

The best way I can describe SOY-GINGER BRAISED GARLIC CHICKEN is: SUCCULENT-LICIOUS!  Now, I have a penchant for making up words (or I’m just an idiot at best), but if that doesn’t work… it has a similarity to our Taiwanese 3-cup chicken but w/ more soy, garlic and ginger sprinkled in there.  And if you haven’t had that dish…hmmmm… how ‘bout it’s just plain good???  ^_^

Btw, I JUST found out the KITCHEN NINJA marinates this tofu dish in a sake & soy sauce concoction. SWEET!  She never ceases to amaze me.

Alrighty, gotta get some sleep to get ready to serve your from our (and this is something I got from an inquiry recently) covert culinary operation!  That just sums it up, right?

Xoxo,

Team SK

3 CUP CHIIIIIIIIIICKEEEEEEEN

First and formost…. THANK YOU for those that came!  Wasn’t that chicken just EFFEN juicy and delicious?  Sweet JEBUS it was, right?  I mean, it’s so good that I just want to run out into the streets, strip down to my skivvies (<— another link just in case you haven’t heard that term in a while) and start singing showtunes, Queen and… ABBA!

On the topic of ABBA, for all our patrons that showed up last night, we dedicate this YouTube-riffic song to you.  And just for you (all 2 of you that read this blog on a sadly periodic basis… I’m sorry ^_^) please replace the word “Music” with “Business”, “Songs” with “Tacos” and “Singing” with “Serving”.  And if you’re too lazy to play the song to envision the message we have personally crafted with two minutes of TLC for you, the chorus would go something like this:

“Thank you for the BUSINESS, the TACOS I’m SERVING…”

SELL OUTS… OR SELLING OUT???

So we’ve been back for about two weeks now from being in-town/out-of-town, and we’re selling out more often than not!  I guess if you’re running a business out of the back of your apartment that NO ONE can see from the street… this is a good thing (or so they say).

We’re starting to get a LOT more Yelp’ers too (you know who you are… and thanks so much and don’t hesitate to YELP away about us ^_^).  There SHOULD be a badge on the left if you want to check out the reviews we have.  We’re really thankful for them, and dread the day it drops from 5-star status (we’re just so used to it now :p).

SO the moral of our story is… rain or shine, we gotta start making even MORE food!  And so we shall starting this Sunday. And WHAT is it we’re serving this Sunday you ask Mr. Chuck Norris (and where the hell have you been any NORRIS… selling more Soloflex’s to unsuspecting individuals in third world countries I suspect!?!?!), I’m glad you asked my karate chopping mustache wearing friend:

CHINESE HAMBURGER MEAT + SPICY MAYO

And if you’re internet impaired (HEY, maybe you’re a YouTube Wizard, or a Facebook Guru or even a Google Grand Master… I dunno because you’re so mysterious and anonymous ^_^), just click the link above for an “un-biased” STARRY KITCHEN entry about it’s delciousness (and for some fun pics too).

Where’s the picture slideshow O’ SK Tumblr Titan?

1. Tumblr’s being a lil b-tch right now and not letting me add more pics for some reason. DOH!
2. And since that’s the case, just check ‘em out on our Facebook Fan Page… HERE

Alrighty.  That’s it for now.  Gotta run, but just wanted to get this juicy morsel of a blog entry out to ya.  Feel free to re-tweet, spread the word or rent an aeroplane (that’s RIGHT…aerOplane) w/ a banner to spread the word… the love… and sometimes the Homemade French Mayo Creme to all your friends, loved ones and not-so-loved ones at your leisure.

Toodles,

Team SK

So sorry blog entries have been lacking. If you missed it, we’re BACK in action today (Sun, Sept 6th). We’re serving CHINESE SPICED HAMBURGER, SESAME CRUSTED TOFU all served with a side of JAPANESE GARLIC NOODLES.

Btw, we thought everyone would be gone for Labor Day weekend… But we were wrong. We anticipate a complete sellout. Hope to see you here!

TEAM SK

PS - it was GQ’s Birthday Sept 1st! Happy Birthday GQ!!!!